For Texas, preserve the Ex-Im Bank

Published 6:02 pm, Thursday, March 5, 2015

Sen. Ted Cruz should rethink his opposition to the Export-Import Bank. The institution is a huge plus for Texas’ economy.

Sen. Ted Cruz should rethink his opposition to the Export-Import Bank. The institution is a huge plus for Texas’ economy.

Photo: Joe Skipper /Associated Press

For Texas, preserve the Ex-Im Bank

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Ted Cruz’s Texas business visitors were correct; the senator and his senior aides were wrong about whether the U.S. Export-Import Bank should be reauthorized before a June 30 deadline. The organization is simply much too important to Texas — and the country.

The business people, according to an article in The Hill, described the meeting as rowdy and the senator’s stance on the issue, as outlined by his aides, as appalling. Cruz’s office has a different take on that recent visit from members of the Texas business community trying to change the junior senator’s mind on reauthorization.

Cruz has been clear on his desire to eliminate the bank, saying in an oped for USA Today last year: “Those siding with foreign corporations, lobbyists and crony politicians will be on one side. Those fighting for the values and interests of American workers will be on the other.”

Interesting. Business folks who provide jobs for Texans because of the Export-Import Bank are anti-worker and friends to crony politicians? If this is what was made clear in that meeting, no wonder the visitors were insulted. But this is not the black and white issue Cruz describes.

Between 2007 and 2014, the bank helped 1,629 Texas exporters sell about $26 billion in goods. Of these, 890 were small businesses, 128 were minority owned and 53 were owned by women.

Cruz describes an agency rife with fraud and mismanagement and helping the country’s enemies. But this is an agency that runs at a profit, which should make it a darling of the tea party set that is intent on dismantling it as an example of corporate welfare.

The Ex-Im Bank returned $1.057 billion to the agency in fiscal year 2013 and its loan default rate has been just above 0.2 percent per quarter. This signals neither mismanagement nor fraud. And with the amount of benefit provided, any fraud would make the case for cleaning up any isolated abuses but keeping the overall mission intact. And if too few companies get too much money, then place limits on each portfolio.

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The Texas visitors to Cruz’s office were among 700 businesses from 41 states who were trying in 400 meetings to sway Congress on this issue, according to The Hill. That’s a lot of business. That’s a lot of jobs.

Cruz and other members of the Texas delegation must rethink opposition to the Ex-Im. This includes Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Stephenville, who, as chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, has been stirring the pot on this issue. The Ex-Im is good for Texas.